M E S 



M E S 



The second species is an annual root, not much 

 branched, of short duration : the whole plant is 

 sprinkled over with glittering particles, like the 

 Ice-plant, to which it bears some affinity in 

 its duration : the stems are branching, of a 

 bright red colour, trailing; the leaves yellowish- 

 green, opposite, attenuated at the base : the 

 flowers suiali, axillary, solitary, on longish pe- 

 duncles, yellow : the calycine segments une- 

 qual, three being short, two longer and broader: 

 the petals numerous, scarcely equal to the long- 

 est segments of the calyx, linear, expanding in 

 the afternoon: the fi'aments numerous, yellow : 

 the anthers yellow: the germ roundish : capsule 

 obtuse-angled, obtruncate : the seeds nume- 

 rous, small, roundish, and brown. Introdu- 

 ced from the Cape, flowering in July and 

 August. 



The third species has a biennial root : the 

 stems are prostrate, smooth, finally terminating 

 in flowers : the lower leaves many, almost as 

 long as the stems, resembling those of Aster 

 Tripolium, but thicker and more succulent: 

 among these spring three or four stems, some- 

 times more round, and having two or three 

 joints, at each of which are two smaller leaves 

 at the lower, and three or four at the upper 

 joints : the surface in all smooth and even, and 

 very minute white teeth about the edge, more 

 perceptible in the smaller leaves, and the lower 

 part of the others: the flowers are usually soli- 

 tary, silvery white, opening in the middle of the 

 day, and of short duration. It is a native of 

 the Cape, flowering from June to September. 



Tile fourth is a biennial plant. A native of 

 the Cape, flowering in July and August. 



The fifth species has a biennial root : the 

 stem is short, nearly the thickness of the little 

 finger: the branches are opposite, spreading 

 very much, obscurely angular, or round, her- 

 baceous, green, the lower ones procumbent, and 

 a foot and half long : the leaves thick, nar- 

 rowing into a short petiole, subsessile, en- 

 tire, ilat, somewhat waved, opposite on the 

 branches, at the flowers single; that is, the flow- 

 ers come out singly on a peduncle opposite to a 

 leaf ; these, the stems, peduncles, calyxes, and 

 germs, are covered with very minute shining 

 dots, which when examined with a magnifier 

 appear to be clear drops like ice : the flowers 

 have no scent, and are open from three to six in 

 the afternoon. It is a native of the Cape, 

 flowering from April to October. 



In the sixth the plant whilst young is herba- 

 ceous, but becoming shrubby by age: the trunk 

 is then woody, a fins^er or more in thickness, 

 covered with a brownish ash-coloured bark : 

 the branches are decumbent, divaricating whilst 



young, cylindric, tender, covered with minute 

 pimples, dark green, thick, fleshy, the bark 

 when old becommg somewhat woody, and as- 

 suming various flcxuose contorted directions : 

 all the branches are nearly of the same thick- 

 ness ; but the upper ones are shorter, and more 

 woody next the stem : the leaves are mostly 

 opposite, but not always so, especially on the 

 flowering branches, smooth, cylindric, convex 

 beneath, slightly channelled above, minute- 

 ly pimpled : the flowers are small. It is a 

 native of the Cape, flowering from June to 

 August. 



In the seventh, the trunk, which attains tlie 

 thickness of the little finger, is smooth and 

 even, covered with a bay-coloured bark, and 

 has frequent joints where branches have fallen : 

 the branches are opposite, spreading irregularly,^ 

 and decumbent from the weight of the leaves : 

 the leaves pale green and slightly glaucous, ob- 

 tusely triangular, smooth and even, opaque, mi- 

 nutely and thickly dotted so as to make a very fiae 

 net: the lower ones longer; their upper ones, 

 whence the peduncles arise, shorter and thicken 

 the calyx four-cleft : the petals narrow, the inner 

 ones gradually shorter, inwardly white, out- 

 wardly purple : the flowers are closed during 

 the day, open in the evening, aud continue 

 so during the night, at which lime they are 

 very sweet. It is a native of the Cape, 

 flowering from June to August. 



There is a variety in which the flowers are 

 sowewhat larger, and of a very pale yellow on 

 the outside. 



The eighth species has woody stems, a foot 

 and more in length, with many short branches 

 and clustered leaves, with which they are so 

 loaded that they cannot support themselves: the 

 leaves are short, bluntly three-sided, thick, 

 smooth, and shining, pale green, scarcely if at 

 all glaucous, with a few thick green dots: the 

 flowers solitary, at the ends of the branchlets, on 

 very short peduncles, large, whitish or very pale 

 yellow within, reddish on the outside and at the 

 lips: the petals very narrow, the inner ones gra- 

 dually smaller : they appear in July and August,, 

 and open before and after noon when the sun 

 shines, opening and closing several times, and 

 finally closing about the fruit, which is ovate, 

 with five lines or angles, five-celled. It is a 

 native of the Cape. 



The ninth has woody stems, forming a 

 regularly branched handsome shrub, standing 

 without support, with a stout stem, from two to 

 three feet high and even more : the branches 

 many, spreading every way, having four lines 

 runningalongthcm, which give them the appear- 

 ance of being quadrangular ; the leaves are subtci- 



